How can I stop being so afraid of death? I'm terrified!?!

How can I stop being so afraid of death? I'm terrified!?

I think maybe because I had to come to terms with my mortality at such a young age (I had a nearly fatal Asthma attack when I was 8, I was in ICU for 3 days) I think about this more than I should. Every time I think about dying, I get that cold feeling in the pit of my stomach and it spreads through my whole body. I cant shake it off. I'm absolutly terrified that I HAVE to die and there is nothing I can do about it. It has gotten worse the last couple of years. I got married, and he is a Marine. He served in Iraq and that intensified my worries. I'm so much more afraid now that I have someone who loves me, and who I love. I hate that someday I will be seperated from him, forever. I'm 21 years old, and I feel that I worry about this much more than I should. I think the word 'dread' best sums it up. Is there anything I can DO to help this? I'm not sure that I believe in heaven or hell, or even reincarnation (although that thought gives me the most comfort.) Can anyone help me?

3 weeks ago
I think one of the things that scares me most is all of the thing I am going to miss. No one knows for sure that there is consciousness after death, I like being me. I don't want to stop being me and I'm afraid that with death comes non-existance. And if there is a life after death, I'm afraid of missing all the people I leave behind. Also, please lay off the 'you're going to hell' stuff. That is in no way helpfull . I'd like other peoples views on the subject, not a lecture on why I should love God. Please respect my right to form my own opinions. I appreciate all of you who are trying to give genuine answers. I asked this question because I feel I needed help with understanding.

At one point in my life, I had the same fears as you did. however, as fate would have it, my fears were not to last. For the past 12 years I have been in and out of the hospital for various reasons, many of them near-death experiences. I am 18 years old and I have already seen and done more than almost anyone I know. I've nearly died at least half a dozen times. And each time I think that it's the end. But then last summer I was using a cheap inflatable raft to go rafting in Saint Augustine, Florida during a huge storm. The waves were at least a dozen feet high, sometimes closer to 2 dozen feet high. Yes, it was stupid, but I didn't care. But then my raft got caught in the tide and I was being pulled out to sea. I barely made it back to shore and I was within an inch of my life. While I was still in the water and thinking I was about to die, I realized that I wasn't afraid. It occurred to me that death isn't something to be afraid of. I realized that if I was about to die, then there was nothing I could do about it so there was no reason to panic (never worry about stuff that is unchangable since if something is unchangable, u can predict it's coming and therefore accept it as part of ur daily life). On the other hand, I knew that there was a possibility that I would survive being pulled out to sea, and if it were to happen, then so be it. There is still no need for fear. If i survived, then I survived and I would be greatful. If I didn't, well then I didn't. This realization came to me just as I completely out of energy and I couldn't hold myself above the water anymore. It was then that perhaps God intervined (though I'm not in any way religious). With the fear gone, a sudden burst of energy ran through me and I was finally able to break free of the tide and make it back to shore. I tell you this not to bring pity or awe, since there is no reason for pity or awe. I tell you this so you can know the one absolute fact: there are infinite roads in life, but they all lead to the same place which is death. We cannot stop death, we can only accept it. Only once you have accepted death can you stop being afraid of it. Perhaps after death there is a much better place than here. Or perhaps it is a worse place. Perhaps there is no place. But you cannot know what lies beyond nor can you control it. The uncontrollable shouldn't be worried about since it would do no good. It is only with the knowledge that death is uncontrollable that you can rid your fear of it and therefore control just a little piece of death.